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NOELANI DECIDED THAT HER FEELINGS WERE A FLUKE.
A lie.
A hoax.
Nimari and Coleman obviously knew Jalen better and they had strictly advised her to not let her feelings show.
But boy was Jalen making it hard.
Flirting with her relentlessly in text messages and in phone calls or FaceTimes, making excuses to come over and see her, and letting everyone see with his actions how much he wanted her.
If Noelani wasn't careful she might turn out to be one of those women in a LifeAlert commercial that she used to laugh at when she was younger: falling and unable to get back up by herself.
Noelani walked into the Prolific Prep gym located behind the high school, feeling her side braid swish a little bit into her yellow and white striped crop top.
She surveyed the expansive gym until she found who she was looking for.
Jalen Green was alone on the court, doing a dribbling drill with two basketballs on the other side.
He was staring straight ahead, his eyes slightly glazed over from focusing.
She slid his eyes over the outline of his face, noting his smooth brown skin, the pinkness of his lips and the sparkle that resided in his chocolate brown eyes.
Noelani tucked her lips in to hide her smile at the mere sight of him before starting to walk towards him.
"Hey!" Noelani called out, to ensure she was heard over the sound of the basketballs echoing throughout the court.
"What's up?" Jalen replied, straightening up to his full height and smiling at her.
Involuntarily, Noelani let herself smile back at him as Jalen wrapped both arms around her shoulders in a tight embrace and rested the side of his head against her scalp.
Noelani hugged him back, wrapping her arms around his torso, "You told me that we were crossing off another restaurant off my bucket list."
When Noelani had told Jalen over text about how most fast food restaurants weren't in Hawaii, he promised to bring her to the ones that he could.
"Oh yeah. Which one did I say?" Jalen stepped back, his arm still wrapped her shoulders.
"Popeyes, I think." Noelani lifted her hands to the waistband of her jeans and began to rub her palms in and out of her pockets, a little nervous at the physical contact.
